Green Briar O30's 1:2 Rovers FC
A perfect 10-0 record elluded the Over 30's as they were handed their first and only defeat of the campaign by Rovers FC at the Middlesex High School on a wet morning in Concord MA.
The game had a competitive edge to it from the start and developed quickly into a very chippy affair. The referee found it difficult to stem the tide of late challenges and extra curricular activity behind the play and the game simmered just below boiling point for the 90 minutes.
There were little in the way of chances falling to the Briar in the first half as the Rovers team succeeded in disrupting the rhythm of play and were coming out on top in the 50/50 battles. Rovers took the lead with a very nice finish close to half time.
A turnover in the middle of the park as the Briar looked to build from the back allowed a clean breakaway by a Rovers midfielder. Entering the box he found a curling shot that eluded John Flannery in goal. The finish had a quality that most keepers would have had trouble with.
The second half started with Flannery taking the field and Kelly taking the reigns between the posts. However it was to get worse for the Briar when a free kick from 30 yards was flighted towards goal. Kelly elected to punch the ball but didn't get enough purchase on it. The result was a ricochet off of an on-rushing attacker into the net.
Soon afterwards a shot was deflected by Conor Hannick and looped up into the air and off of the crossbar only to be cleared to safety. After this the Briar gained a foothold in the game and tried to mount a comeback.
Gary Keane, returning from injury, was found with a squaring pass 18 yards from goal. His shot however lacked the venom to trouble the goal seriously. Soon afterwards the Briar was handed a life line.
A driven corner from the left wing was handled in the box for a penalty. Gary Keane took charge of the ball and dispatched it to the left hand side of the net to make it 2:1 with 15 minutes remaining.
The game had a competitive edge to it from the start and developed quickly into a very chippy affair. The referee found it difficult to stem the tide of late challenges and extra curricular activity behind the play and the game simmered just below boiling point for the 90 minutes.
There were little in the way of chances falling to the Briar in the first half as the Rovers team succeeded in disrupting the rhythm of play and were coming out on top in the 50/50 battles. Rovers took the lead with a very nice finish close to half time.
A turnover in the middle of the park as the Briar looked to build from the back allowed a clean breakaway by a Rovers midfielder. Entering the box he found a curling shot that eluded John Flannery in goal. The finish had a quality that most keepers would have had trouble with.
The second half started with Flannery taking the field and Kelly taking the reigns between the posts. However it was to get worse for the Briar when a free kick from 30 yards was flighted towards goal. Kelly elected to punch the ball but didn't get enough purchase on it. The result was a ricochet off of an on-rushing attacker into the net.
Soon afterwards a shot was deflected by Conor Hannick and looped up into the air and off of the crossbar only to be cleared to safety. After this the Briar gained a foothold in the game and tried to mount a comeback.
Gary Keane, returning from injury, was found with a squaring pass 18 yards from goal. His shot however lacked the venom to trouble the goal seriously. Soon afterwards the Briar was handed a life line.
A driven corner from the left wing was handled in the box for a penalty. Gary Keane took charge of the ball and dispatched it to the left hand side of the net to make it 2:1 with 15 minutes remaining.
The remaining minutes were dominated by the Briar and a slew of corners and shots peppered the Rovers net. None of the pressure yielded any clear cut chance until the final minutes.
A freekick from Gary Keane was headed goalwards. Leo O'Connor latched onto the flick on but his narrow angle shot flew across the goal to safety.
And that was it, the whistle blew and the Briar were handed with a defeat, and little complaints about the result either. The result proves that having a full strength team with strength in numbers is required for success even in Division 5 of the OTH league. Let's hope it is a lesson the team can take on board for next week's playoffs.
As a side note to the game, the Briar is delighted to welcome back Gary Keane from his knee surgery and hopes he can go from strength to strength in the coming weeks.
Line Up: Flannery, Glynn, Hannick, Concagh, McElwain(c), Kelly, Keane, Hall, O'Donnell, Hickey, O'Connor
Subs: Graham, Nassar
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